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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22459570">Clear Intent</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/JahStorybook/pseuds/JahStorybook'>JahStorybook</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Merlin (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>BAMF!Gwen, Girls With Swords, Loss of Virginity, M/M, Parent Gaius (Merlin), Protective Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Protective Knights (Merlin), Virgin Magic, Virgin Merlin (Merlin), bamf!morgana, possible slight dub con, this is not smut</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-01-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-01-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 17:14:57</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,543</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22459570</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/JahStorybook/pseuds/JahStorybook</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After waking up in the dungeons and finding Agravaine has used a sorcerer to steal the kingdom, an unknown sorcerer offers to help reclaim it with a spell. His only demand? The help of someone who is truly virtuous and pure! (a virgin)</p><p> </p><p>Merlin consents, but he views it as more of a responsibility and a chore than sex, and his concept of it is very clinical, and it does not go into any detail.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Gwen/Morgana (Merlin), Knights/Merlin (Merlin), Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Merlin/Sorcerer</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>135</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Clear Intent</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>I actually have a porn version of this thats finished already! Hesitant to post it, but maybe when this is fully published I will.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“You can forget breaking out of those chains, no one has escaped these dungeons on their own in a long time,” Leon said when Arthur woke up to find his arms bound. </p><p>“What happened,” the prince asked, looking around. Gaius was sitting next to the King, who looked to have been hit over the head. Morgana was holding a shivering Gwen under her arm and stroking her cheek. Quite a few of his knights seemed to all be shoved into the one cell, and huddled into a corner was a figure he didn’t let his gaze linger on. It was probably just a prisoner that had already been in the cell. </p><p>“Agravaine has taken a hold of the castle with the help of a sorcerer,” Gaius told him. </p><p>“My father,” Arthur asked, nodding to Uther. </p><p>“I’m doing what I can, Sire.” Arthur nodded, sitting up and getting a look around the cell. His father, Percival, Leon, Lancelot, Gwen, Morgana, Elyan, Gaius, Gwaine, and some poor sod who had still not said a word. </p><p>“Is anyone else injured?” Gaius nodded to the bundle behind him and Arthur looked the stranger over.<br/>
“Hey! Hey, sir, are you alright.” He got no answer, just watched as the huddled figure hid further from their gaze. </p><p>“We’ve tried getting him to talk, but he hasn’t said a word, and no one can reach him because of these blasted chains,” Gaius complained, lifting his arms to show the shackles to Arthur. </p><p>“Leave him for now, we have to find a way to get to Agravaine.” </p><p>“I believe I can help with that,” a voice said, making all of them whip around to face the gate. A hooded man stood with his face hidden, watching them all closely.<br/>
“Who are you,” Arthur demanded, standing off the floor. </p><p>“A friend.” </p><p>“Release us, then,” Leon demanded standing up. </p><p>“I will require the help of one brave soul to stop the spell placed on Camelot,” the man said, ignoring Leon. </p><p>“Why not the help of many brave souls,” Gwaine asked, mouthy even in the face of danger. </p><p>“You cannot beat him with swords. The magic he’s found is too strong, even for the noblest of knights.” Arthur believed that, looking around at his knights all in the dungeons. </p><p>“What of our guards, the other knights? Has he killed them all,” Arthur asked.</p><p>“They are under the control of Agravaine’s sorcerer. Most of them are gathered outside, asleep. I know of a spell that will wake them up and destroy all enchantments in the kingdom.” The knights took a step back, at that.</p><p>“You’re a sorcerer,” the Prince asked, eyeing him warily. </p><p>“I am. The spell I wish to perform will require the help of one of you.” Gaius sat up, eyes wide now. He looked frightened, actually, and Arthur wondered if he recognized the sorcerer or knew what he wanted.</p><p>“Who do you need,” Arthur asked, reluctant to go along with something a sorcerer suggests but seeing no other way out of these dungeons.</p><p>“Someone of true virtue, so pure of heart that they remain unsullied.” The knights all shared a glance, each moving as though to offer themselves but the man waved them off. “Virtue of body and soul. You’ve shared your bodies before, it won’t work if you are not pure.”</p><p>“Are you saying… You can’t possibly expect that there is a virgin in this room,” Arthur said, before glancing at Morgana and cocking his head. He had forgotten she was there. </p><p>“Don’t look at me, I bed Gwen near nightly,” she hissed, and the prince wrinkled his nose. Not Gwen or Morgana, then.</p><p>“I really didn’t need to know that, sister,” he said before looking back at the sorcerer. “You see, even Morgana isn’t a virgin, so get whatever sick idea you’ve cooked up out of your head. My knights are all seasoned warriors, the king has <em> two </em>children, and I’m quite certain Gaius has seen a thing or two in his day.”</p><p>“Or three,” the physician said, ignoring the look Arthur shot him. Honestly, what did he expect? Magic was sexy back in the day. </p><p>“There is one among you who remains pure. In fact, he is more pure than most his age.” They looked around at each other, none of them seeing the servant at the back of the cell as he sat up slowly, jacket falling down to expose a head of black hair and tired blue eyes.</p><p>Arthur knew it couldn’t be Lancelot, even if the knight was a gentleman he was also most loved by the ladies. Gwaine was much the same, although he hardly hid his <em> conquests </em>. It certainly wasn’t himself, not after those evenings spent with so many serving girls in the old chambers no one knew about. </p><p>“Leon,” Arthur asked, and the knight shook his head. </p><p>“Not even close, Sire.” There was no real shame in his knight’s voice, just a sheepish grin despite the situation. His gaze turned to Elyan then, but the knight shook his head once, not saying any more on the matter.</p><p>“Percival,” he guessed then, because the man could certainly be shy. </p><p>“Afraid not. They like me at the tavern.” A cough from behind them had them turning accusingly on the prisoner that shared their cell, as if to tell him to hush, but Gwaine’s eyes widened suddenly and they all seemed to catch on. </p><p>“Oh no,” the knight said, voice full of disbelief. “<em> Merlin </em>?” The servant ducked his head down, trying to sink back into his chains and the corner. </p><p>“Oh Merlin, you shouldn’t be here,” Lancelot said, clearly just realizing what the servant being here meant as well, and Arthur would be inclined to agree if he wasn’t shocked stiff.</p><p>“I-”</p><p>“Merlin,” Arthur growled, regaining himself. “Please tell me you aren’t about to say you’re <em> virtuous </em>.” His servant shuffled his feet, face bright red. The knights looked at him in bewilderment. He couldn’t seem to force any words out of his open mouth, and the knights were glad for it.</p><p>“Don’t say it,” Gwaine pleaded, shaking his head. Lancelot and Percival looked sick, the noble knights pale at the sight of their friend in the dungeon with them,being asked by a sorcerer to declare himself pure.</p><p>“I just never really…The thought never appealed… My village was small, and I didn’t really take a liking to any of the... It isn’t that there weren’t times when I considered it, I just wasn’t interested in…” Gwaine cleared his throat, making Merlin shut up entirely.</p><p>“I’m a virgin, too. I’ll help you.” The sorcerer laughed and Arthur would have smacked the knight if he was close enough. Everybody knew Gwaine had slept with, if not many, at least the one girl here and there.</p><p>“I can see your soul has found warmth with many others, brave knight, lying is pointless. You will not work. Only one of you in this room will work, but he must volunteer.” Arthur was still trying to wrap his head around <em> virgin </em> and <em> Merlin </em> . Surely his manservant wasn’t <em> that </em>innocent. A glance over the lanky boy said otherwise.</p><p>“Then maybe we make Merlin a little less virtuous,” Gwaine said stubbornly, making the servant jump nearly a foot in the air, face turning pink in the torchlight once more. “Merlin, <em> Merlin </em>, I will sleep with you right now if you even think about it!”</p><p>“There is no time for that. The boy has virtue so he will decide.” Arthur wasn’t going to give him that chance.</p><p>“It doesn’t matter what he has, because you are not taking my manservant. We don’t use magic and we certainly don't sacrifice virgins in Camelot,” the prince argued, daring Merlin to disagree. </p><p>“I do not intend to kill him. He who is with virtue will stand against the wrongful king.” Merlin fighting Agravaine was truly a horrifying thought. </p><p>“Why does he have to be a virgin for that? I can fight better, I’ll go in his place,” Arthur argued.</p><p>“There will be no fighting,” the sorcerer said, voice bouncing off the walls. “His virtue will simply be used as power to defeat the impostor's magic.” </p><p>“What,” Gwaine choked out, lunging forward at the sorcerer. His chains stopped him, but Arthur thought he heard the stones shifting. “Stay away from him you bastard!”</p><p>“I can take it,” Merlin said, voice loud enough for every single one of them to hear, but full of so much fear. There were tears in his eyes as every single gaze turned to him. “I’ll do it.”</p><p>“Merlin, don’t be stupid! I’m not about to let you get taken advantage of by this creep just because my uncle found himself a sorcerer. We'll find another way.” The chains around his manservant’s wrists fell away, and Arthur jerked forward as Merlin stood up. “I mean it, <em> Mer </em>lin.”</p><p>“It’s fine. It won’t be the first time I gave something important up for Camelot’s sake.” And that’s what surprised Arthur, shocked him enough for Merlin to slip past him. By the time he thought to physically restrain him, Merlin was too far away. </p><p>“My boy, please,” Gaius pleaded as he passed, reaching for him. Merlin gave him a small nod, smiling warmly and catching his hand but not really stopping. The hooded man on the other side of the bars looked him over carefully.</p><p>“It will not be easy. Your soul may be damaged and you will not be without pain when I cast the spell. Are you prepared for that?” Merlin looked back at him, at all of them, and Arthur knew he didn’t really have to think about it. </p><p>“Yes.” Gwaine lunged towards Merlin, grabbing him around the waist and dragging him back to the floor where he pinned him down. Arthur breathed a sigh of relief, thankful someone was thinking clearly at least.</p><p>“Absolutely not! Merlin- Merlin, you listen to me, I am not going to let this happen!” Suddenly Gwaine’s arms fell from around Merlin, eyes losing focus. Merlin stood, a bit shakily, and walked to the now open gate where the mystery sorcerer looked away from the enchanted knight, gold eyes fading to dark ones. Gwaine snapped out of his trance, looked at his empty arms, and almost sobbed. “<em> Merlin, don’t do this! </em>” </p><p>“It’s alright Gwaine.” Arthur didn’t feel like it was alright. “I’ll be okay, I promise.”</p><p>“Merlin, as your prince I am ordering you to stop at once!” Merlin ignored him, facing the hooded man. Percival was closest to Merlin now, and made as if to grab his arm but suddenly his chains became very short and he was dragged back to the wall, hands bound beside his head. </p><p>“If I do this, none of them get hurt. Every single one of them leaves this dungeon the way they got here.” The prince didn’t know what to do to stop him. With a renewed strength and vigor, he started pulling on his chains. </p><p>“They will not be harmed. It is only yourself who you should be concerned for,” the man warned, lifting his hand to rest on Merlin’s shoulder, guiding him past their cell. All of the knights were calling after him, now.</p><p>“Merlin! Merlin stop! Stop!” Lancelot looked so pale, eyes following Merlin as though if he blinked the boy would disappear. Gwaine was fighting harder than Arthur to break free. Gaius had tended to Uther’s wound as best he could in their conditions, and was now trying to drag himself off the floor to get to his adopted son. Too soon, Merlin was out of sight. </p><p>“Gaius,” Arthur said, turning to the physician with an almost animalistic look in his eyes. </p><p>“I can’t do anything about the chains, Sire.” Arthur looked around for anything that could help them, but he found only the walls and the floor. With Uther unconscious, they were more than outnumbered. Morgana was staring down at her chains in concentration, as if trying to burn a whole through them with just her looks.</p><p>“We can’t just let him- Merlin can’t just…” Lancelot was still staring at the bars where Merlin had been, his eyes full of dread and face seeming to crumble. With every injustice the knight saw, it still tore him up and he would fight to stop it.</p><p>“I’ll tear them all apart,” Gwaine snarled, and at a particularly ferocious lunge the stones holding his chains gave just a bit, causing everyone to start.</p><p>“Have our dungeons always been so poorly made,” Leon asked, trying his own chains once more. No one else seemed to be able to break loose, but Gwaine threw his whole body forward again, kicking back at the wall with a shout. </p><p>“I’ll fight them all!” The chains came knocking him back. He repeated the action, and this time he was free. Arthur wondered if it was sheer force of will or actual strength that allowed it to happen. Maybe strength of will. The knight was always going on about strength, wasn’t he?</p><p>“Gwaine, get the keys, we need to hurry.” Arthur’s entire body trembled as Gwaine left the cell, only to return a few short minutes later, keys on hand and face dark with pain and anger.</p><p>“There’s no guards. The halls are all empty.” He freed Arthur first before making his way around them. </p><p>“That just means we have to hurry. Gaius, take care of my father, I’ll find Merlin.” The physician nodded, letting Morgana past him as he leaned over Uther.. Arthur could see that they had once been friends, that Gaius cared a great deal for the king, even if things had grown tense between them over the years. </p><p>“Sire, our swords,” Leon said, leading them into the next cell over. Morgana grabbed one up and tossed it to Gwen before strapping one to her belt before Arthur could stop her, and by the way she wielded it, he decided not to. She caught his look and glared.</p><p>“I can’t let Gwen’s one friend get hurt. We’re helping you rescue that bumbling fool.” He nodded, throat very dry at the thought or his servant giving up his innocence for magic and Camelot and something as stupid as Arthur’s fool uncle.</p><p>“We won’t let that happen. Gwaine, Percival, arm yourselves. We’ll have to split up if we want to catch the sorcerer before he completes the spell. Morgana, take Gwen and go with them. Leon, you, Lancelot and Elyan are with me.” </p>
<hr/><p>Merlin was shaking while the sorcerer took his hood off, revealing a man about Uther’s age. He supposed if he had to lose his virginity to a stranger, at least this one wasn’t unpleasant to look at. The thought brought him no pleasure. If it were about looks, he'd have fallen into bed so many times by now, but it was more than that. It isn't that he was taught any more strictly than other children that sex was sacred, he just took it more to heart than most. The first few years after it occurred to him he <em>could </em>have slept with anyone, it started to feel more like something special that he wanted to gift to someone he cared for. </p><p>“How does it work? I’ve come across lots of spells but none ever required this,” Merlin asked, figuring if they were about to do this, then to hell with hiding his true self. The man would likely no soon enough when he got a taste of Merlin's power.</p><p>“I thought I recognized you're spirit. I’m sorry that I’ve asked something so precious of you, Emrys.” All Merlin could do was shake his head and keep his tears in. "We will join, and at the moment you lose your purity, I will harvest just enough of the power to break every hold magic has on anyone within these walls. It is a powerful thing, your soul, and is even more powerful when changing and adapting. I will do my best to make it less uncomfortable for you."</p><p>“I’m alright. It’s… Its for my friends, I won’t be upset over that.” Not terribly, anyway. He tried to tell himself it was very noble, what he was doing, but he found that thought just made him sad.</p><p>“If you would please disrobe,” the sorcerer instructed, lighting a candle and placing it on the table in front of Merlin.</p><p>“Is that part of the spell,” he asked, taking his jacket off.</p><p>“It is actually just to make you feel better,” the sorcerer said with a warm smile, and that smile made Merlin feel just the tiniest bit better. The sentiment made this feel like something he was being asked of, and more like something he was offering, even if that wasn’t really the case.</p><p>“Thank you,” he said, dropping his neckerchief on the floor. They had made it to a bedroom, although going by the dust on the bed Merlin was considering the floor over comfort. “Should I…”</p><p>“You don’t have to be completely naked. Whatever you are most comfortable with. Here,” the sorcerer said, whispering lowly. The blankets on the bed shook out, dust flying everywhere, before settling at the base of the mattress. It all felt so unreal. From an outside point of view, maybe this could be considered romantic. The candle, the magic, the mystery of not knowing this man’s name. Instead it felt like a hollow gesture.</p><p>“That would be so useful next time I’m cleaning the Prince’s chambers,” Merlin whispered, stepping towards the bed. The sorcerer, who Merlin desperately wanted to place a name to, followed after him. He ended up removing everything but his shirt, letting it act as a buffer between his embarrassment and the man hovering over him in open robes. </p><p>“I suppose it might be hard to relax, but remember who you are doing this for. Do you trust me?” Merlin wondered if it really mattered. After thinking about it some more, he realized painfully that id did, because if he didn't trust this man he'd suffer so much more.</p><p>“I uh… I trust you.” A stupid thing to say, he thought to himself. He didn’t know this man, how could he trust him? But he did, if not for the man's brutal honesty then for the fact that he knew Merlin could stop him at any time with a wave of the hand. The man started whispering then, eyes flashing gold as he pressed his hand down on Merlin’s chest. A warmth spread through him, and Merlin found his eyes closing as well, body going rigid.</p><p>“This part may be… well, it may be unpleasant. Your magic will be lending me power and that can be quite painful, even when entirely of your own will. I'm not sure how it will effect someone so close to their magic.” Despite his fear, and disappointment, Merlin nodded, the movement difficult due to his body’s frozen state. He’d keep it together, for Arthur’s sake, for Morgana's and Gwen's, and Gwaine, and Lancelot and every knight and Gaius and Camelot. </p><p>He did keep it together, too. He did not shed a single tear when hands he did not know did their best to prepare him with hushed whispers, and he kept his eyes open and trained on the ceiling when he felt the sharp pierce of his body being filled. It was an odd sensation, one he wasn't really prepared for. It didn't feel <em>good, </em>not like all the other teens in his village crowed about. Maybe it was because this wasn't about pleasure, only power, or maybe Merlin was just no good at it. Either way, Merlin was sure of one thing, and that was that he didn't like it.</p><p>Merlin could feel it, the moment the Sorcerer got what he needed after Merlin's soul decided that was enough <em>sullying</em>. He felt the tingle of magic at the base of his neck, snaking around him and leaving him cold, right before blossoming in a tidal wave of power.</p>
<hr/><p>Arthur regrouped with his knights after they’d gotten lost in the castle, clearly having been played by an enchantment. </p><p>“If the halls all turn into one, how are we supposed to get out of here,” Leon asked, throwing the doors to what should be the armory open. Instead he found another hall. </p><p>“We could try and break out through the windows. It’s been done before,” Gwen offered, but Arthur was hesitant to go anywhere near the bars. He wasn’t sure what he would see of the knights or his subjects if he looked out at the kingdom.</p><p>“Very well. We’ll keep trying to navigate this maze, shout for us if you have any luck.” Morgana kissed her, a passionate and fast kiss, before leaving her and Elyan to try every bar in favor of marching with Arthur the rest of the knights. He was proud of his sister, for that. For many things actually, but mostly because she was one of the bravest fighters he knew. </p><p>“At this rate Merlin’s-” Gwaine started harshly but Arthur cut him off.</p><p>“Don’t. We’ll get to him.”</p>
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